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Jerik Blackthorne
Jerik Blackthorne was one of two sons to Cadden Blackthorne and Renalla Starrider. He and Guan were birthed from cloning cylinders, just like their half-brothers Caius and Xanic. Like their half-brothers, they themselves were not clones of either Cadden or Renalla. Rather, they were test-tube birthed. Their aging was, as a result, accelerated until puberty, after which the process stabilized to normal levels. The reasons for this were unknown, and perhaps deliberate. Physically more powerful than his brother, Jerik was not as clear-minded as Guan. Yet he was still concise and adept at making tactical decisions, often leading to victory. Inheriting his father's genes as a warrior, Jerik seldom spoke, and when he did it is when he was spoken to or if he had something important to say. He saw his lightsaber as a tool, used to enhance his combat prowess, rather than as a weapon he should rely on. Jerik practiced relentlessly in melee combat technique, focusing on his lightsaber, and held a high chance of besting others in his class in a duel. His abilities to use the Force were more of enhancements for his other physical abilities, and as such he would not typically use it as his weapon, but as a way to get things done. This made Jerik a deadly lightsaber duelist, and a good ally to have on one's side. Alongside his brother, Jerik had a busy life since he left Ronu III. Since the day they were brought to their father, they had gone through a lot and he learned much from his experiences. However, those days ended when Cadden departed from the two to Mandalore, and Jerik joined the Jedi Order's cause. He and his brother were stationed on Taylon, in the City of the Jedi, during the Cylon Imperium's attack on the world and a near-successful Xen'Chi assault not too long after. Jerik reformed the Guardians of Life with his brother after the Xen'Chi attack on the world, but his arrogance got the better of him and, unlike Guan, he left for Onderon shortly after Sivter attacked the planet's Jedi Temple. This triggered Jerik's decision to begin a quest to hunt down and destroy the dark side wherever it resided. However, in time, Jerik's pride and ambition betrayed him and, while on Ronu II, Jerik accepted the dark side of the Force and became known as Darth Odium. He studied under the ghost of the Sith Lord Darth Nefarious and over time became qualified through his sheer determination to hold the rank of Sith Master. Odium fought and defeated Roth Sorabac in combat, and named him his first apprentice. Darth Odium continued to grow his organization by capturing nearby systems and expanding in his power. He came under possession of a holocron created by Exar Kun, and from that he was able to create an amulet from a Force crystal to which he betrayed his master and enslaved his spirit within. From that point, Odium proactively took up arms in a new Jedi Purge, alongside the Sith Brotherhood and Shadow of the Sith. Biography Early Life Born and raised on Ronu III, Jerik had no real knowledge of outside life for several years. Renalla Starrider, his mother, raised him, his brother, and two half-brothers by herself. Instructing each in the ways of the Jedi since they were of proper age, their training was accelerated due to their accelerated growth, a side-effect in their test-tube birthing process through cloning cylinders. When the four young Jedi hit puberty, the side-effect wore off. At the age of fifteen, they witnessed the traumatic experience of their mother succumbing to a disease she had been slowly suffering from over the course of several years. They spent the next three years alone, until Cazzik Wyn and Xanamiar Knight found them and delivered them off-world. Jedi Knight The two Blackthornes traveled with the Wyns and Knight for some time, before Cazzik could track down their father. When Guan and Jerik traveled with him, Jerik came to realize that Cadden had a knack for attracting trouble. In the year prior to Blackthorne Enterprises being constructed in the Udine System, they had cracked down on several criminal organizations and waged a personal war against a small-time Imperial warlord. When the time for Blackthorne Enterprises finally came, Jerik followed his father into the asteroid field to learn of their Mandalorian heritage. He also received his first taste of the dark side, there, when he was tempted by the heritage to turn to a life of war. However, with the help of Guan, Jerik was able to turn away from the asteroid, laden with dark side energies, and not return. He helped Cadden with the planning of making Udine independent from the Wild Star Confederacy, and later helped him dismantle Blackthorne Enterprises when complications arose that compromised Cadden's plans. During this time, they witnessed their first taste of the Nomad Soul's power, who had corrupted Cadden and turned him into an agent of darkness. Guan, with his father's help, was able to destroy the Nomad Soul, while Jerik had dueled Cadden and beat him. He joined Cadden upon the unofficial construction of the alleged Dark Justice team onboard the Rogue Star, and played a key part in capturing the Falleen dreadnaught Peacekeeper (later renamed to Conqueror by the Mandalorians). Jerik was a key player in the defense of the City of the Jedi during the Battle of Taylon against Cylon Imperium forces. He slew the dark Jedi Raven in lightsaber combat, but at the price of another nudge toward the dark side. When the Xen'Chi attacked the city a month later, Jerik aided in the ground defenses near Cazzik's position, until the Xen'Chi's Chosen arrived. He survived the battle, with some minor wounds, but was fortunate enough to leave the battlefield alive. Temptation Through his extensive training in the Force, Jerik shifted over to a new focus of mastery in lightsaber combat, honing his skills in the areas of powerful strikes and swift blows. Under the instruction of Jedi Master Rayatryn Jeib, he began to grow arrogant of his increasing skills with the blade, and further command over the Force. Jerik learned of the Battle of Onderon not long after its conclusion, and his hot-headed nature drove him to traveling there himself. Jerik ignored Guan's warnings, though his brother at least insisted that he be accompanied by a Jedi Knight and Taylon soldiers, to prevent him from doing anything rash. With that assistance, Jerik took the Inferno to Onderon. There, he met with Daer'Gunn, Grandmaster of the Jedi Order, who gave Jerik the Sith dagger that slew his grandfather with instructions to deliver it to Cadden. This brought about a wave of emotions, which drove Jerik to start a crusade against the dark side itself. He justified this crusade by rebuking claims that he was acting out of vengeance, as Jerik saw his hunt against the dark side as a quest for justice. This quest led Jerik to the Ronu System, where he was to travel to Ronu III and meditate on his next move there. However, Jerik's plans were interrupted when he sensed, and remembered, the dark side energies on the neighboring world of Ronu II. Instead of following what he and his brothers had long since decided and avoid the planet, he went to the surface where he, Lobair Cean, and four Taylon soldiers began Jerik's quest to destroy the taint of the dark side on the planet. Darth Nefarious, a Sith spirit entombed underneath Ronu II's surface, had other plans, and lured Jerik to his resting place. There, he corrupted young Blackthorne, and turned him to the dark side. Jerik accepted the teachings of the Sith in order to grow stronger, and bring justice to those who attacked Onderon. Given the name Darth Odium, Jerik left the tomb and slew the two troops who accompanied him. He returned to his ship and repeated the process with two more troops stationed, and then dueled and killed Lobair. His journey to the dark side had just begun. Transition to Sith Darth Odium traveled to Nefarious's palace on the jungle world, where he studied at the foot of the Dark Lord himself. He learned of the ways of the Sith through the various manuscripts that Nefarious had collected and embraced each teaching. With a passion in his heart to destroy the Cult of Shadow, he was driven to becoming a Sith Master in as little time as possible. Odium was taught on advanced lightsaber combat techniques, harnessing the dark side of the Force to achieve otherwise-impossible feats, and even of patience. His skills were put to the test several weeks later when a man named Roth Sorabac arrived on Ronu II. Jerik utilized his training to fight and defeat Roth, nearly killing him twice. The first time was intervened by Nefarious, who congratulated Odium on a job well done. The defeat of Roth was his final test, and Odium was ready for the title of Sith Master. Odium offered the role of apprentice to Roth, who initially refused. As he was about to be slain, Roth abruptly changed his mind, and accepted his role as apprentice to the Sith Lord, knowing it would save his life. Jerik was tempted to kill the man, regardless, seeing him as unfit for the title of a Sith Lord, but after Darth Nefarious convinced him otherwise, Odium reluctantly gave Roth the Sith name of Darth Dolosus and spared his life. Dark Shadows The first step in Odium's plans involved the transformation of the Scorpion People, Ronu III's only sentient inhabitants, into Sithspawn. The process made the Scorpion People completely loyal to Darth Odium, and obedient (to an extent) to Darth Dolosus. When the entire populace was either transformed or eradicated, Odium launched his grand campaign in building up his forces. The Scorpion People were merely the beginning, and a means to acquire his true power. Following the successful transformation of the Scorption People, Darth Odium sent his apprentice to Yavin IV in search of any legacy to the Sith Lord Exar Kun. Darth Dolosus came back almost empty-handed, reporting that the temples had been swept clean, with the exception of a single holocron, which proved to be once owned by Kun. Spending the following weeks learning of the secrets held within the holocron, Odium was not about to let his guard down, and heightened security throughout the Order of the Sith Lords, both in the limited fleet capacity they had and on the ground. Soon, Trucido Severus informed him of the destruction of the City of the Jedi. Suspecting possible hostilities against his faction of the Sith, Odium sent Trucido and a detachment to find those responsible for the destruction of the city in order to negotiate an alliance. Trucido was successful in finding the Sith Brotherhood, and its master, upon which he was successfully able to integrate the Order into a much larger alliance that was already formed. When Odium heard this news, he was furious that it was demanded Trucido shifted his allegiances, but ultimately accepted Darth Trayus's offer once he discerned that denial would not only mean the Alarian's death, but also the inevitable death of him and destruction of his order. Shortly after he received this news, Darth Odium was approached by Nefarious's spirit. Through a short exchange, he learned that Nefarious had, all along, planned to twist Odium into his will, and then subsequently possess his body. Odium, however, had been planning his own betrayal against his master, and using an octahedron shaped from a Force crystal, he successfully captured Nefarious's spirit within the amulet, caging the Sith Lord and rendering him powerless. Third Jedi Purge Darth Odium pressed for his forces to engage the Jedi Order in a war in his own pocket of space. Utilizing his own resources, lead by Darth Dolosus and Terrand Neyrr, he was successful in killing or capturing several known Jedi. During this time, Guan had learned of the events transpiring in the area of space and set out to investigate. The investigation ultimately lead Guan to Ronu II, where he discovered that Jerik was behind the atrocities. While his brother pleaded for him to return to the Jedi Order, Darth Odium, enveloped in the ways of the Sith, refused, and made his own counteroffer; join him, or die. When Guan refused this offer, Darth Odium attacked, and following an extensive duel he was successful in driving his lightsaber into Guan's midsection. A part of Jerik resurfaced, as he stood there, unwilling to believe what he had just done. This faded, however, when Dolosus attacked him. Infuriated, Darth Odium immediately defended himself, and brought a swift end to the usurper. He looked back at his brother's presumably-lifeless form, before walking away to leave him to rot. A few days later, Darth Odium declared the powerful and deadly dark Jedi Burx Ludo to be his new apprentice, and dubbed him the title of Darth Furor. Darth Furor became Odium's agent of destruction, and took a proactive role against the Jedi in the new Purge, leading the armies of the Sith into battle personally. Weary of his encounter with Dolosus, Darth Odium kept a strict eye on his new apprentice, and looked for any indications that he would rise against him. Weeks later, Darth Odium was approached by Darth Trayus to assist in taking down Cazzik Wyn, a precursor to the Sith Lord's ultimate plot of destroying the entire Jedi Order. Odium contributed Darth Furor and his fleet to the task, seeing this as the ideal circumstance to prove his apprentice's worth and loyalty to him. Odium opted to remain on Ronu II through the end of Darth Trayus's campaign and failed attack on Ossus. After Darth Furor returned with what was left of their fleet, Darth Odium decided it was time to move on their own and take steps forward in securing their own future. Training in the Force Having mastered essential forms of combat, Jerik crafted himself into a deadly duelist. Though he held strong powers in the Force, they typically supplemented his ability to wield and duel with a lightsaber. Force Powers In addition to basic Force powers, Jerik also used the following: *Battlemind *Battle Precognition *Force Deflection *Force Healing *Force Valor Darth Odium's Lightsaber Darth Odium's lightsaber was one he made especially for his unique method of fighting. Rather that utilizing a standard single-bladed lightsaber, Odium extended the hilt of his lightsaber to include a segment in the rear that, once released, extended a fibercord interlaced with cortosis weave, allowing him a greater reach and a quicker victory upon an unsuspecting foe. Active Threads Dark Shadows Category:CharactersCategory:City of the JediCategory:Guardians of LifeCategory:Jedi OrderCategory:CaddenCategory:Featured ArticleCategory:Order of the Sith LordsCategory:Sith Triumvirate